One-Dog Sleigh

Ten years after the publication of Casanova and Hoyt’s One-Dog Canoe, the collaborators bring back the heroine and dog of that book for a boisterous wintry sequel. Like its predecessor, this story also updates the folktale of “The Mitten”: as girl and dog ride through the woods in a cozy red sleigh, one forest animal after another dives in (pity the pony pulling them along). Filled with rhymes, sound effects, cumulative lines (“Sorry, can’t delay. It’s a one-lynx, one-owl, one-squirrel, one-dog sleigh”), and anthropomorphic animal comedy, the story reads a bit like a more talkative and broadly humorous version of Lita Judge’s Red Sled. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)